Charles John Huffam Dickens (/tʃarəɫz ˈdɪkənz/; 7 Februar 1812 – 9 Juin 1870) wis an Inglis writer an social creetic. He creautit some o the warld's best-kent feectional chairacters an is regairdit bi mony as the greatest novelist o the Victorian era.[1] His warks enjoyed unprecedentit popularity in his lifetime, an bi the 20t century creetics an scholarts haed recognised him as a leeterar genius. His novelles an short stories are still widely read the day.[2][3]

Born in Portsmouth, Dickens left school tae wark in a factory whan his faither wis incarceratit in a detors' preeson. Despite his lack o formal eddication, he eeditit a weekly jurnal for 20 years, wrote 15 novelles, five novellas, hunders o short stories an non-feection airticles, lecturt an performed readins extensively, wis an indefatigable letter writer, an campaigned veegorously for childer's richts, eddication, an ither social reforms.

Dickens's leeterar success begoud wi the 1836 serial publication o The Pickwick Papers. Within a few years he haed acome an internaitional leeterar celebrity, famous for his humour, sateer, an keen observation o chairacter an society. His novelles, maist published in monthly or weekly instawments, pioneered the serial publication o narrative feection, that becam the dominant Victorian mode for novelle publication.[4][5]Cliffhanger endins in his serial publications keept readers in suspense.[6] The instawment format alloued Dickens tae evaluate his audience's reaction, an he eften modifee'd his plot an chairacter development based on sic feedback.[5] For ensaumple, whan his wife's chiropodist expressed distress at the wey Miss Mowcher in David Copperfield seemed tae reflect her disabeelities, Dickens impruived the chairacter wi positive featurs.[7] His plots war carefully constructit, an he eften weaved elements frae tapical events intae his narratives.[8] Masses o the illiterate puir chipped in ha'pennies tae hae ilk new monthly episode read tae them, appenin up an inspeerin a new cless o readers.[9]

Dickens wis regairdit as the leeterar colossus o his age.[10] His 1843 novella, A Christmas Carol, remeens popular an conteenas tae inspire adaptations in ivery artistic genre. Oliver Twist an Great Expectations are an aw frequently adaptit, an, lik mony o his novelles, evoke eemages o early Victorian Lunnon. His 1859 novelle, A Tale of Two Cities, set in Lunnon an Paris, is his best-kent wark o historical feection. Dickens haes been praised bi fellae writers—frae Leo Tolstoy tae George Orwell, G. K. Chesterton an Tom Wolfe—for his realism, comedy, prose style, unique chairacterisations, an social creeticism. On the ither haund, Oscar Wilde, Henry James, an Virginia Woolf complained o a lack o psychological deepth, lowse writin, an a vein o saccharine sentimentalism. The term Dickensian is uised tae descrive something that is reminiscent o Dickens an his writins, sic as puir social condeetions or comically repulsive chairacters.[11]